What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningIsocetyl Stearate
Emollient
Squalane
Emollient
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Dimethicone
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Zea Mays Starch
Absorbent
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Salvia Miltiorrhiza Root Extract
Skin ConditioningDimethiconol
Emollient
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingSphingomonas Ferment Extract
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Acetyl Dipeptide-1 Cetyl Ester
Skin Conditioning
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingWater, Isocetyl Stearate, Squalane, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Dimethicone, Glycerin, Zea Mays Starch, Pentylene Glycol, Butylene Glycol, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Salvia Miltiorrhiza Root Extract, Dimethiconol, Sodium Hydroxide, Sphingomonas Ferment Extract, Caprylyl Glycol, Citric Acid, Acetyl Dipeptide-1 Cetyl Ester, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Urea
Buffering
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane
UV Absorber
Ethylhexyl Salicylate
UV Absorber
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialCetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Dibutyl Adipate
EmollientGlyceryl Stearate Citrate
Emollient
Ethylhexyl Triazone
UV Absorber
Cetearyl Isononanoate
Emollient
Hydrogenated Coco-Glycerides
Emollient
Myristyl Myristate
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate
Absorbent
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine
Skin Conditioning
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingWater, Glycerin, Urea, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Ethylhexyl Salicylate, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Dibutyl Adipate, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Ethylhexyl Triazone, Cetearyl Isononanoate, Hydrogenated Coco-Glycerides, Myristyl Myristate, Glyceryl Stearate, Panthenol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Phenoxyethanol, Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine, Hydroxyacetophenone, Xanthan Gum
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Glycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.
Topically, glycerin does several things at once:
Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.
Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.
This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.
Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.
Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.
Learn more about GlycerinGlyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Learn more about Glyceryl StearateWater. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.
So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.
You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!
Learn more about Water
